Hyundai teases upcoming facelifted Santa Fe

The Santa Fe sits below the massive Palisade in Hyundai’s international lineup of SUVs. While we had earlier generations of the Sante Fe in India and it faired quite well in the market, the lack of updates and premium pricing let it down. However, for the 2021 model year, Hyundai is giving the Santa Fe a major update, including a new platform!

It is very unusual to see a vehicle get a new platform as part of a mid-cycle update, especially in this case since the latest generation Santa Fe has only been out for a couple of years. However, the new 'third-generation Hyundai vehicle platform' will allow future Santa Fe models to be better in terms of performance, handling and safety but more importantly, it will allow for electrification. Yes, there will be hybrid and plug-in hybrid variants of the Santa Fe on offer internationally, for the first time.

In terms of looks, the teaser images only reveal the front-end, albeit in four different iterations. Presumably highlighting how the different variants will look. The bigger grille is a sort of hexagonal shape, and tapers off to either side where the actual headlight units are placed. While the grille is bigger than before, instead of being longer like other cars, it is wider in this case and looks neat. There is a ‘T’ shaped DRL element which starts near the bonnet line and continues below to meet the grille and splits the two lightning elements. This split design is becoming somewhat of a signature in Hyundai’s SUVs.

The updated Sante Fe will be launched in September 2020 for the European market. The imposing looks and hybrid variants should make the Santa Fe a pretty compelling option in the SUV space. We do not know if the Santa Fe will make a return to the Indian market, it is unlikely. However, with the SUV segment booming, it wouldn’t be a particularly bad move for Hyundai.